


Contract Complete

by Nilysil (Vuetyris)



Series: Lucifer and Xev [5]
Category: Warframe
Genre: Contract work, M/M, Mawframe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-09
Updated: 2018-07-09
Packaged: 2019-06-07 17:18:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,947
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15223994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vuetyris/pseuds/Nilysil
Summary: After running an exhaustive contract, Lucifer and Xev just want to take a break from waiting on filtered contracts with low pay. Xev, meanwhile, mulls over his feelings for the Chroma.





	Contract Complete

Usually, their rendezvous would end at the terminal.

Xev overlooks the relay’s cramped mercenary floorspace with a sigh, leaning up against a guardrail as he watches the troves of syndicate operatives bickering amongst themselves. Warframes weave through the crowd alongside the factionless marines looking for the next prospective contract work; easy to weed out from the ones in suited faction gear. A pantheon of operatives congested in a small space, the prime muses, the bustle deafening and almost muting the small scuffle that breaks out below him.

With a half-cant perspective, he can see the shimmering of spilt blood on a Red veil loyalist’s lips, a punch pulled from a Hexis follower spattered. It doesn’t enthrall him, looking back to the crowding of multi-toned suits and worn warframes. He disregards the mumbling he hears behind him, the gawking of his primed complexion and battle scars – he rarely steps on the relays for such reasons. He’s only here to wait on a certain chroma to deliver their payload.

Gilded chin in hand, the Excalibur prime eyes the towering chroma as he wades through the noisy plaza, impatiently elbowing his way through the crowd with a device carefully coddled against his puffed stature. His bright ivory and turquoise pelt stands out among the crowd of diluted tones, towering above the crowd, easy to distinguish amongst the visual noise in the cramped space. But his puffing feathers express his aggressive chill that surrounds him, casting the unwary aside half startled and intimidated, a presence that is difficult to ignore as well as daunting. By the standards of the syndicate operatives, the ones always intrigued by the warframes occupying their space, they stay far away.

The renegade mercenaries just stay out of his without a second glance.

Lucifer shoves his way past a bickering cluster of operatives on his way to a cephalon kiosk, pausing briefly as one of them shouts, an aggressive growl rumbling in his chest to disperse them. Left alone, he heaves the heavy data device into the small alcove in the wall and onto the reluctant shelf surface laid barren to time. It lands with a hollowing thunk that deviates the attention of those around him; a wandering operative’s head quickly turns until he identifies the source, hurriedly shunting themselves away from the agitated chroma.

In front of him, a cephalon flickers awake and illuminates the corner in a dampened aquatic hue.

“Here’s the device; take from the area designated. All data retrieved, unscratched,” the chroma growls; the payout they were offered was less than ideal for the difficulty. Nullifers and the looming presence of an active fissure was not something he’d consider as worth less than forty grand.

“Excellent,” the cephalon mumbles with disinterest, igniting a display of the data device’s contents in a hologram behind the recess’ surface. Text scrolls at an accelerated pace, data markers placed and erased in a blinding speed with the nuance only a connected cephalon can muster as they pry through the insurmountable information. All the chroma can see is a blurring illumination; releasing an exhale as he waits for the digital consciousness to just bring up their payment. Money to put forth towards the maintenance of his squadmate’s vessel; Lucifer doesn’t need much.

“Everything seems to be in order,” the cephalon dryly states, diminishing the display with contempt, just another analysis to run through. “As for the matter of payment, the contractor has put down twenty thousand credits.”

“Hold on,” Lucifer growls, leaning against the surface and staring down at the cephalon’s meager display, “the payout was supposed to be thirty-five grand. Where’s the rest?” He snaps, voice rumbling in his large chest. They could’ve just captured a couple people for interrogations for twenty, it would’ve taken much longer surely, but for the high security they went through for a measly twenty thousand?

The cephalon is quiet for a minute before surging back to life, “unfortunately, it seems that the client had miscalculated their assets… prior to your arrival they seem to have retracted their contract and the price drop may have been done to pay the array’s service fees and the refile fee instead of paying the array service fee separately.”

“That’s a load of bullshit, bitbrain, and you know it. It’s their fucking fault, not ours to just ‘deal’ with when they contracted us for forty thousand.” A claw taps at the surface concealing the cephalon’s hologram device, irritated.

“I am aware of that, but they withdrew before the payout was dispensed. I am unable to correct the error in this state, as you’ve already got the device and fulfills the contract… however.”

“What is it,” the chroma growls.

“Due to their negligence… when refilling the contract, they seem to have forgotten to include the delivery information they shown in their formal contract. In the active one, you would only be paid twenty-thousand credits for retrieval, without a designation of delivery.” The cephalon smarms, bringing up a display of the two contracts – one reading ‘NULL’ – more for Lucifer’s reference than the cephalon’s. “I can’t fulfill a contract that is invalid… and nor would the one that sent it would retrieve the device. Would you like to hold it for ransom at a higher amount? There are file paths that hint that it is well worth more than the initial offer. Would you prefer this venture to the lump sum payout.”

The chroma’s aura dulls, muscles once drawn relax, head tilted down towards the cephalon’s presence, “I assume that, due to their negligence, we are well within our right as the contractors, since the contract is fulfilled.”

“Correct; you’ve collected the device, you fulfilled the contract. It is yours to deal with, as you please.”

Lucifer pauses for a moment and stands to his full height, turning to look back to where Xev is watching from above. “Ransom it?” is all the chroma asks through their coms – the Excalibur nods. Turned back, Lucifer also nods. “Ransom it, I am assured you can get us – say – around 50 thousand?”

“From the filer? Doubt it – my coding obligates I am not able to refer to them outside their contract. There is encrypted files on here that may be worth well more than that… perhaps a few thousands if I can relocate the frequency of the vessel it originated.”

Xev chimes in through the chroma’s com links, “50 thousand is good, unless the cephalon wants to negotiate for a while. Let’s just drop it and get outta here.” Lucifer nods – he never was much of a fan of the crowded market.

“Just offer it back for 50 thousand, I’m certain they’ll pay up soon enough,” he rumbles. He does his best to drown out the ramble of the mercenaries around him, the shouts, the loud banter, the ominous background hum of the relay’s aged engine and systems. It’s too much noise, too much going on.

In front of him the cephalon chirps again to life. “They have problems with their communication system - “ they took out the grid during the raid for the device “ - and are more than willing to pay the ransom for the device back within the next few hours. We’ll have one of our stewards deliver the device in another location. Once it’s delivered,” they start, the device’s temporal existence diminishing down into a digital archive, in a vessel that can be shuttled through the cephalon weave to its delivery point. “you will receive the payment. The head cephalon will contact you when they have another contract that meets your partner’s criteria.” In an instance their display fizzles, leaving the chroma alone at the alcove.

There’s a heavy sigh from the chroma, a relief short-lived as his feathers puff up as the noises around him sink back into his mind, igniting his defensive chill. Voices run in a blur surrounding him, saturating his thoughts as he guides himself back to the stairways leading to the higher levels – where the smell of blood doesn’t sink as deep, nor distorts his senseless sight with the draw of violence. Up on a floor above, as he glances, he can see Xev waiting for him. It’s only been the third time in their partnership has the prime stepped aboard and out of his comfort zone.

Not that this was the chroma’s comfort zone either; to drawn agitated, his claws flexing as rumbles.

Lucifer’s steps ring as he walks up the wide sloping stairway, disregarding those around him with the best of his ability. He only gives an occasional growl, just enough to have them steer clear and to prevent the ever-present bloodlust from clouding his thoughts. The noise, too close to that of a crowding vessel filled with grineer soldiers, ripe to be shredded. To stain his pelt crimson red and warmed.

He’s quiet when he approaches the prime, who remains just as silent as he. Externally they keep the silence, the pair walking back to the docks. “It’d be enough to pay off the expenses completely, right? 70 thousand credits; get those repairs finalized and we can finally go freelance?”

“It should be enough,” the Excalibur sighs, relaying his thoughts back to the chroma beside him. “The right board engine took a hit on the way out, will need to have a mechanic check on it later to be sure its operational.” He remains close to the towering ice chroma, sinking into his partner’s aura as they navigate back to his ship. They’ve both worked out of it for months now, taking jobs together but never really involving themselves farther than running contract work together.

The prime sighs, drifting out of the chroma’s line of sight, where the larger warframe’s tail drifts and sways against his thigh. With Lucifer taking the lead, it gives Xev space to stare and ponder, his thoughts fragment when the chroma calls back. “Want to wait in the ship for a call back on the payment?”

Xev adverts his sight as Lucifer looks back, his undamaged portion tilted towards the chroma’s field of view. “Yeah, I can get someone out later to check the outboard engines for if its just superficial damage.” He follows the chroma through the crowds, the air open and crisp as they walk through the central lobby and towards the checkpoint – security quickly checks them through and to the docks where his ship waits. The prime shunts off his commlink with the chroma briefly; questioning how he could ask the chroma to stay with him outside of their missions.

A warmth glows in his chest as he imagines the prospect of not being alone anymore; since they started running missions together the chroma has always just been hanging around in his ship, lounging whichever way he found comfortable. And it’s been like that they started partnering up – Lucifer didn’t have his own transport vessel at the time. He’s not physically alone, he’s well aware as he steps back into the chroma’s aura, yanked out of his thoughts as turquoise claws pull him close against his side.

Outside his thoughts Xev watches what coaxed the chroma’s actions, a large group of operatives walking in the opposite direction – the hallway small. Any glances they had were swayed by the chroma’s defensive growl, instinctive in his reactions to keep his partner close and safe. Xev basks in it, tucked beneath the chroma’s arm as they approach his ship. The chroma’s cold dilutes his burning heat, easing his nerves as he opens their commlink again. He’s comfortable just like this… against the chroma’s feathers before he eases himself away, a flush grown over his gilded face. He’ll have to ask Lucifer later.

He just doesn’t know how.


End file.
